A nonprofit organization in central California has adopted a progressive strategy to foster the local expansion of interest in pickleball while adapting to the surrounding community. The mission of Fresno Area Pickleball is to promote and support pickleball at public courts in central San Joaquin Valley. One of the largest focuses of the organization is to earn the trust of the population, which assists in securing participants and donations as a 501(c)(3). All facets of the establishment work together to allow Fresno Area Pickleball to serve the needs of the county while remaining a nonprofit organization.
The city of Fresno struggles with above-average poverty rates, poor educational opportunities, overcrowding, and other quality of life issues. These economic stressors are recognized by Fresno Area Pickleball and inspire their mission to support the community. Within the intricate web of volunteers and staff, Randy Mehrten serves as the President of the organization and a driving force behind the company vision. The organization currently manages four cities in the area including 22 courts, and has worked with the city of Fresno to allocate tax revenue to build 35 permanent courts in the near future. In these locations, the company facilitates tournaments, activities, and games for 300-400 members annually.
When asked about the current cost of membership rates, Mehrten said, “In this age of literally everything rising through inflation, our goal is to remain constant in our price for a one year membership. We charge people $35 per year to be members of Fresno Area Pickleball. Though this doesn’t necessarily cover all costs of court rentals, and purchasing nets and balls, we are beginning to make up the difference through hosting small tournaments and providing consulting services to local businesses interested in team building opportunities provided by Pickleball”.
Fresno Area Pickleball maintains a solid and efficient company structure. “We have a board of directors of seven individuals, elected by our membership”, Mehrten states. “Each board position… carries varied responsibilities essential to our organization. For example our Treasurer functions as a non profit accountant, keeping our budget and completing purchases of balls, nets, and court rental fees. We also have individual positions committed to maintaining our website, including tracking our membership and signups, and another position that writes our newsletter. Another one of our board members coordinates our site hosts at each of the four sites. This is an essential position that enables us to shape the experience of our players to each court”. These “site hosts” play the important role of creating a good experience for players, often by adjusting the number of players at each court based on their skill levels.
For the operations willing to serve as a nonprofit, there is support available. “Being a non profit organization makes it easier to articulate our public benefit,” Mehrten said. “This certainly enables us to create a positive reputation in order to engender trust from our community”. Because the organization is exempt from paying federal and state income taxes, the organization can save money and reinvest the savings toward its mission. “In addition to membership fees, being a non-profit allows us to accept donations from individuals and organizations which provides us with funding and support for our activities,” Mehrten concluded.
There are also inherent trials that accompany running a volunteer institution. “The most concerning issue for us is board member turnover. We are all volunteers that love the game, and are committed to our community…but sometimes life happens. Consequently, where we can, we attempt to engage in crossover training – particularly with regards to our accounting and website responsibilities”
Fresno Area Pickleball continues to improve its methods of functioning, while possessing a vision of efficiency and service. “I really believe that every member of this team has an essential voice… and teams are far better when they work to create this culture”, Mehrten explains. “It would be easy to think our role is simply to provide equipment for people to play Pickleball. But serving the community (seniors, recent retirees, young folks on a budget, new enthusiasts to the game and quite likely new to exercise in general) is a far more important reality”.
